Saturday, August 5, 2017

Ma Barker, Rashomon, John McCain And Seven Samurai

Ma Barker was the stuff of legends. She was a "public enemy" back in our criminal heyday. Everybody in her family was a criminal. What a proud mama she must have been. Her family became world famous. Movies and stories were written about them.

The Barkers came to a bad end. And so it goes - crime doesn't pay.

Some families promote education; some loyalty; some service; some fame; some wealth. Some families promote crime. Some families are fictional. Some are real.

In Oliver Twist, Fagin assembled his family of street urchins and headed up a thriving business in good old London. Charles Dickens made up Oliver and Fagin and the Artful Dodger and a whole world of characters.

I don't know what or who inspired Dickens, but I have a good idea who and what will be inspiring authors of both fiction and non-fiction for decades, possibly centuries to come. I don't reckon they will be inspired by a pleasing sound.

What we are looking at is greed and corruption and treason. What we are looking at is racketeering and money laundering. What we are looking at is crimes of every kind, including pedophilia. What we are looking at is degeneracy and depravity. What we are looking at is beyond imaginable.

Telling this story will be a challenge. I don't think any one person will be able to tell it all. There is so much here. There are so many versions. There is so much fake news and disinformation. There are so many lies. Viewing Rashomon should be a prerequisite for anyone approaching this topic.

The truth is not always easy to discern. If I were putting together a TV drama on this I would start with John McCain - not because the story actually starts with John, but because it's a convenient entry point. I would start with John obtaining and turning over the Steele dossier to the FBI.

What happens after that is mayhem. It involves a cast of thousands and the action is non-stop. You better watch the Seven Samurai to get yourself in the proper mindset.

How many warriors this story will have has yet to be determined. We can lead off with Preet Bharara, Sally Yates, and James Comey.

We can move onto Eric Schneiderman on a state level and Robert Mueller on the federal level.

A lot of folks are relying on James Mattis to keep us from harm while all this is going on. Mattis is currently the Secretary of Defense. He might just end up being President before this is over.

The press has also been playing a vital role in all this. It's the press' job to keep us informed and root out corruption. Unfortunately in today's world of advanced technology and social media, it is not easy to determine who is and who is not the press and who is and who is not propagating both fake news and alternative facts.

The Washington Post and The New York Times have always been regarded as reliable news sources. They still are. We've also had a history of major radio and TV stations broadcasting honest news - that's changed. Rush and FOX have contributed to that.

Joseph Goebbels would have loved the tools we have today. Indeed, many of the people using those tools are disciples of Joe.

The game is a afoot. Stay informed as best you can. Be prepared for anything and everything. Deal in facts and go wherever the truth takes you. Our country is suffering under a foreign occupation.

It's going to get very messy, very fast. If you haven't already, check out some of these people on Twitter: @LouiseMensch; @MollyMcKew; @elisabethbliss; @Billbrowder; @jwishner; @Pinche_Pi; @AltCyberCommand; and @TrueFactsStated.